Friday, October 31, 2014

Microsoft has launched the Microsoft Band, a fitness-focused wrist-worn device that connects to Microsoft Phones, Android, iOS and OS X. It will also integrate with Apple's HealthKit service and Health app for iPhone.

The Microsoft Band is very similar to Samsung's Gear Fit, offering a thin watch-like device that wraps around a user's wrist. Up top is a rectangular colour touchscreen that displays content horizontally, which can be somewhat awkward when holding a watch in front of your face with your elbow at a right angle.

A resizable clasp is at the bottom of the Microsoft Band, allowing users to find a size that's most comfortable for them. The device is also sold in sizes of small, medium and large.

Inside the band loop is a magnetic charging attachment and a heart rate sensor. Microsoft advertises that the Band will offer two days of runtime on a single charge. The colour display turns on for notifications but is turned off the rest of the time, and requires a button press to be enabled.

The Microsoft Band features integrated GPS for run tracking (the Apple Watch does not feature integrated GPS).

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

A display sans for one paragraph (or shorter) length text: quotes, openings, titles, etc. You could use it for body copy, but that’s not where the typeface shines.

The font has many, many languages and features. Stuff like small caps punctuation or Bulgarian/Serbian alternates. There is an instructional PDF included.

Neris is the name of my city's river. While it doesn't really translate into anything meaningful, it looks good in both Lithuanian and English while showcasing most of the distinct features: slanted e, semi-serif i, stylized ink traps and curved sharp joints.------------

Monday, October 27, 2014

Here's a collection of NASA sounds from historic spaceflights and current missions. You can hear the roar of a space shuttle launch or Neil Armstrong's "One small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind" every time you get a phone call if you make our sounds your ringtone. Or, you can hear the memorable words "Houston, we've had a problem," every time you make an error on your computer.------------

Friday, October 24, 2014

In late 2013, E-Volo flew a driverless version of the Volocopter, and Stephan Wolf, one of the company's founders, is confident that the first piloted model will fly very soon. While it won't be cheap, it is the kind of technology that will eventually democratise flight by the mid-2020s, says Bülthoff.

Developed by pilot Mike Jump and his colleague Mark White at the University of Liverpool, the simulator that I flew simplifies flight control down to basic up, down, left, right and speed control moves that anyone can learn in a short time. Or it can fly autonomously between chosen points. In tests, five volunteers who had never flown but who could drive cars, mastered the system in around 5 hours.

The Volocopter has 18 rotors, each 1.8 metres long, that work in counter-rotating pairs around a circular frame. While it looks odd, this arrangement means the torque effects of each pair cancel out and the vehicle just goes up and down, or side to side, by changing the speed of different rotor pairs.The prototype has nine lithium-ion battery packs, each driving two motors, that currently allow it to fly for 20 minutes.

The joystick works in the same way as a quadcopter remote control, Wolf says. "It's easy to fly even if you have never flown. If you let go of the stick, the Volocopter just hovers where you left it," he says.------------

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Today, Google Design are open-sourcing 750 glyphs as part of the Material Design system icons pack. The system icons contain icons commonly used across different apps, such as icons used for media playback, communication, content editing, connectivity, and so on. They're equally useful when building for the web, Android or iOS.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Telsa has released a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive version of the Tesla Model S. On the top-of-the-line P85D, that second motor brings the max speed up to 155 mph and 0-60 mph down to 3.2 seconds. Musk also announced a new 'autopilot' system for all new Tesla cars, which can automatically change lanes when you push the turn signal stalk, automatically reduce your cruise control speed when its forward-facing camera spots a new speed limit sign, and other self-driving functions. Over time, software updates will be rolled out to add more safety/driver assistant features, until eventually your Model S can drive itself.

Some reports suggest that the new Tesla Model S also has stop-and-go adaptive cruise control (it watches for cars slowing down in front, and then speeds back up automatically), it can automatically park, and (on private property) you can summon the car to your current location. If these features aren’t available immediately, they’ll be added later via over-the-air software updates.------------

Friday, October 10, 2014

Tech Radar has published an in-depth review of Tesco's latest budget (£129) tablet.

Snippets follow:

"This is an accessible device with an HD display, solid build quality, and almost unadulterated Android 4.4 KitKat."

"The screen resolution is 1920 x 1200 pixels. Colours are rich and vibrant, text is sharp and easy to read, and you can happily watch movies, game, or read on it for hours."

"The Hudl 2 measures 224 x 128 x 9mm. and weighs 410g. It feels nicely balanced and it's satisfyingly slim. The soft touch coating on the back wraps around the sides adding grip and making it very comfortable to hold."

"The Hudl 2 feels surprisingly premium and it looks good too. I had the black model for review, but you can add some colour if you prefer as it's available in blue, turquoise, orange, pink, purple, red, or white."

"After fully charging the Hudl 2, I surfed the web for a couple of hours, played Clash of Clans for ten minutes, watched two movies, and then the kids watched an episode of Spongebob. By the end of that it was dropping down to the 10 percent mark. Not too impressive."

"If you're shopping for a family tablet that you can share with the kids, this is it. If you want to gift a tablet to someone who has never tried one before, this is it. If you want a cheap tablet for casual use around the house, this is it."------------

Tuesday, October 07, 2014

Nexa Rust from Fontfabric Type Foundry is a multifaceted font system consisting of font sub-families Sans, Slab, Script, Handmade and Extras. Each of these sub-families contains a number of font weights which have a characteristic warm, rough look and display a few degrees of saturation.

Friday, October 03, 2014

Emergent is a real-time rumour tracker. It's part of a research project with the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University that focuses on how unverified information and rumour are reported in the media. It aims to develop and best practices for debunking misinformation.

You can view a list of rumours being tracked on the homepage, along with their current claim state (True, False, Unverified). Click on a story to visit a page that visualises the sources reporting the rumour, and a breakdown of social shares per source.

You can also click on individual articles on the story page to see specific revision and social share data about that article. ------------

Wednesday, October 01, 2014

Nixie is the first wearable camera that can fly. At your cue, Nixie unfolds and takes flight. Nixie composes the perfect shot from an awesome perspective, capturing the moment without interrupting the moment.

[Ed. This project is one of the finalists in Intel’s Make It Wearable competition.]